Location

Delft is known for its historic town centre with canals, Delft Blue pottery, the Delft University of Technology, painter Johannes Vermeer and scientist Antony van Leeuwenhoek, and its association with the royal House of Orange-Nassau.

Delft University of Technology (TU Delft) is one of four universities of technology in the Netherlands. It was founded as an academy for civil engineering in 1842 by King William II. Today well over 20,000 students are enrolled.

In 1842 the Netherlands lagged behind its neighbouring countries from an industrial point of view. The country required technically trained people, and therefore the Royal Academy for Civil Engineers was founded.

The Academy used the building vacated by the artillery school. The Academy of then is the Technical University of today, which is also the largest employer in Delft.

The Netherlands is world famous for its hydraulic engineering works. Students from all over the world come to the TU and the Unesco IHE to gain more knowledge. Large projects are simulated to scale in the WL/Hydraulics. Delft is a city with a huge and significant history and in 1246, Delft received its city franchise from the Dutch Earl Willem II. Delft flourished and new neighbourhoods were added. As early as 1355 the city reached the size it would remain until the 19th century.